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If you're a football fan, you've likely watched the Terry Tate: Office Linebacker spots -- the hilarious Reebok ads that feature a menacing man tackling business-types in a crackdown on employee etiquette.

Tate's co-workers know precisely how the Calgary Flames were feeling when they rolled out of bed Super Bowl Sunday.

Sore.

Stunned.

Probably not the least bit excited about eventually returning to the office in the aftermath of Saturday's 3-2 shootout loss to the Chicago Blackhawks at the Saddledome.

The biggest difference between the Flames and those run over by 'The Pain Train' in the Reebok ads -- if you haven't seen them, they are a must add to your YouTube to-do list as you check out all the latest and greatest Super Bowl commercials -- is they know they did everything right Saturday night.

They deserved two points.

They were just two seconds -- 2.1, actually -- away from depositing them.

Instead, Blackhawks winger Marian Hossa silenced the Saddledome crowd as the final seconds ticked off the clock and the Flames failed to cash in on an overtime powerplay before being blanked in the skills competition and settling for a single point.

They ran a near-perfect race and then fell two steps before the finish line.

They pounded out an A+ paper and then erased it all as they crafted the final sentence.

They figured out the recipe for success and then dropped the plate on the way to the table.

"I think the whole game was a positive," insisted Flames defenceman Dennis Wideman. "Except that we didn't score on our chances. But if we play like that, we're going to win a lot more games than we lose."

That was the overwhelming feeling but, with a 1-3-0-2 record despite a home-heavy schedule, it's time to actually win a few.

After giving his players an off-day on Super Bowl Sunday, Flames head coach Bob Hartley will literally become a head coach Monday morning, trying to massage the psyche of a group that must be wondering what more they have to do to win hockey games.

He'll remind them they were defensively sound in Saturday's heartbreaker, limiting a dangerous Blackhawks team -- albeit a tired Blackhawks team -- to only a handful of legitimate scoring opportunities.

They were disciplined.

And they wouldn't take 'no' for an answer from Blackhawks backup goalie Ray Emery, coming in waves until they finally managed to put a couple of pucks past him in the third period.

The Flames outshot their out-of-town guests 47-19, a tally that doesn't even include three attempts off the iron. The unofficial count of scoring chances was equally lopsided in their favour.

But ... they still lost.

How they respond, starting with Tuesday's road tilt against the Detroit Red Wings (5:30 p.m., SNWest, Sportsnet 960), will tell us a lot.

The buzz-word in the Flames' room after Saturday's loss was "frustrating," and that feeling will eventually go one of two ways.

They could consider it proof positive they're on the right track, evidence they actually have enough firepower to take the game to one of the NHL's elite squads.

Or they could start feeling sorry for themselves, lamenting the one that got away.

In a 48-game sprint, there's absolutely no time for that. Especially when you're the early leader in the Seth Jones/Nathan MacKinnon sweepstakes, not exactly a race the Flames want to be in the thick of.

After getting the cold shoulder from Lady Luck against the Blackhawks, they might be feeling like they couldn't catch a break in the draft lottery anyway.

"We're going to keep building," promised Hartley after Saturday's loss. "I see many positive signs all over our game. It's just a matter of collecting a couple of wins and grow a little confidence for our boys."

Gilbertson: No time for Flames pity party

If you're a football fan, you've likely watched the Terry Tate: Office Linebacker spots -- the hilarious Reebok ads that feature a menacing man tackling business-types in a crackdown on employee etiquette.

Tate's co-workers know precisely how the Calgary Flames were feeling when they rolled out of bed Super Bowl Sunday.

Sore.

Stunned.

Probably not the least bit excited about eventually returning to the office in the aftermath of Saturday's 3-2 shootout loss to the Chicago Blackhawks at the Saddledome.

The biggest difference between the Flames and those run over by 'The Pain Train' in the Reebok ads -- if you haven't seen them, they are a must add to your YouTube to-do list as you check out all the latest and greatest Super Bowl commercials -- is they know they did everything right Saturday night.